Abstract Based on the panel data of prefecture level cities in China from 2005 to 2019, this paper identifies the causal relationship between smart city construction and the improvement of urban livability by using the multi-point DID method. The study shows that smart city construction can significantly improve urban livability, and the conclusion remained valid after the placebo test and the robustness test of PSM-DID matching. Mechanism verification indicates that smart city construction can promote the improvement of city livability through resource allocation effect, innovation-driven effect and entrepreneurship promotion effect. Heterogeneity test reveals that there are significant differences in urban location, geographical characteristics, population size and development model to policy responses. Moreover, eastern cities, coastal cities, cities with larger population and non-resource-based cities are more significantly affected by the policy. This paper proves that the construction of smart cities can improve the quality of life of urban residents and enhance the livability of cities. Therefore, strengthening the training of entrepreneurial and innovative talents, promoting the construction of new infrastructure and promoting the balanced development of regions are realistic and effective ways to improve the quality of people’s life, promote modern urban construction and improve China’s digital system.
JIN Xiangyi. Smart City Construction and Urban Livability: Based on Quasi-Natural Experiments of Smart City Pilot Projects. Economic Survey, 2024, 41(1): 042.
2024, Vol. 41 
